AROUND MISSISSIPPI — Loans and grant funds will be provided to applicants in 11 states to support businesses, improve the quality of medical care, and create or save hundreds of jobs through the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Rural Economic Development Loan and Grant program. Three electric power associations in Mississippi are receiving loans and/or grants. […] [...]

AUSTIN, Texas — Farm Credit Bank of Texas (FCBT) reports net income for the quarter ended March 31, 2013, totaled $53.8 million, a 57 percent increase from the same period of 2012. The increase was due largely to a $6.4 million increase in noninterest income, combined with a $13.7 million decrease in provision for loan […] [...]

TUPELO — The Tennessee Valley Authority has honored regional businesses, local power distributors and other local leaders for exceptional leadership and participation in TVA’s Green Power Switch renewable energy program in 2012. Green Power Switch Leadership Awards were presented in 13 categories in a special ceremony in Gatlinburg, Tenn. Launched in 2000, Green Power Switch […] [...]

MERIDIAN — East Mississippi Electric Power Association is raising rates for some customers because of higher wholesale power rates charged by Mississippi Power Co. to cover the costs of its Kemper County power plant. The Meridian-based electric cooperative says customers in Lauderdale, Clarke, Newton, Wayne and Jasper counties will see power rates rise by 9.3 […] [...]

NORTH MISSISSIPPI — In a political role reversal, Republicans are blasting President Barack Obama’s plan to consider selling the Tennessee Valley Authority, an icon of the New Deal long targeted by conservatives as an example of government overreach. Obama’s 2014 budget proposal calls for a strategic review of the TVA, the nation’s largest public utility […] [...]

NORTH MISSISSIPPI — The Tennessee Valley Authority has refueled its Unit 2 reactor at the Sequoyah Nuclear Plant ahead of schedule. In a statement, TVA also said the refueling came in under budget. The reactor at the plant in Soddy-Daisy, Tenn., near Chattanooga, Tenn., was scheduled to be down for 90 days when the planned […] [...]

NORTH MISSISSIPPI — Fitch Ratings has assigned an “AAA” rating to the $1-billion 2012 series B Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) global power bonds. The bonds were priced Dec. 18, 2012. Proceeds from the 2012 series B bonds will be primarily used to refinance outstanding debt. In addition Fitch awarded a parity global power bond rating […] [...]

HATTIESBURG and JACKSON — MISO’s board of directors has approved seven new transmission-owning members, as well as a new transmission-planning portfolio. The additions include six Entergy utility operating companies, including Entergy Mississippi in Jackson, along with Hattiesburg-based South Mississippi Electric Power Association (SMEPA). Full integration of Entergy and SMEPA is planned for December 2013. [...]

NORTH MISSISSIPPI — The Tennessee Valley Authority is expected to have a special meeting today to discuss delegating authority to the utility’s new chief executive until it fills several vacancies on its board. The board is made up of nine members and five seats are pending congressional action, including one that’s up for reappointment. Congress […] [...]

NORTH MISSISSIPPI — Nuclear power plant regulators want more specific information from TVA on how the utility plans to protect reactors in case of severe flooding. According to the Chattanooga (Tenn.) Times Free Press, the Nuclear Regulatory Commission heard TVA’s flood plans and scheduled another meeting on Dec. 13, seeking more information. An NRC project […] [...]